The race to replace Paul Ryan is on

[DonViejo]

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Whip Steve Scalise have started courting Republicans in case the speaker retires.

By RACHAEL BADE and JOHN BRESNAHAN 04/09/2018 05:05 AM EDT

Two top members of Paul Ryan’s leadership team, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Majority Whip Steve Scalise, have begun angling for his job in the event the speaker calls it quits after the election.

They’re closely monitoring the moves of the other and quietly courting Republicans who could help them clinch the top post, according to 20 GOP lawmakers and aides interviewed for this story.

Neither man is actively rounding up votes at this point, and both of them downplayed the possibility of a looming clash. Scalise said in an interview that he would not challenge McCarthy for speaker — “I’m not running against Kevin for anything,” he told POLITICO — while McCarthy said he’s focused solely on keeping the House in November and pursuing President Donald Trump’s agenda.

But Scalise also expressed interest in leading the conference someday — remarks that only intensified simmering speculation in GOP circles about his intentions. Adding to the intrigue, some of Scalise’s allies have urged him to be ready if McCarthy falls short for speaker, as he did in 2015. And some of McCarthy’s allies discount Scalise’s vows not to mount a direct challenge, noting Scalise’s willingness to attempt to leapfrog more senior Republicans in the past.

“Everyone is talking about this,” said one veteran Republican House member who asked not to be named of the brewing rivalry. “We’re sizing them up, seeing who would be a better fit. It’s the prism that we look at them through now.”

more
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/09/mccarthy-scalise-speaker-house-republicans-492807

[DonCoquixote]

1. as much as I would normally smile

This is a dry run to launch Ryan into the 2020 or 2024 presidential elections. 2024 can be dangerous, especially if he sells himself as the anti trump, and can convince the then Utah Senator Mitt Romney to be his Veep. That would be chosen as the ultimate way to chip Obama's name of the walls.